Former Fernandina Beach Mayor Bradley Bean penned an opinion editorial in the weekly News Leader August 5, that neatly summed up the current city’s commission in a single sentence writing: “Our current city commission doesn’t have a revenue problem, they have a willingness to rob you problem.”
President Reagan said something similar describing the federal government 40 years ago saying: “The government doesn’t have a revenue problem, it has a spending problem. Bean altered it to describe the current city commission’s fiscal ineptitude, particularly when it comes to the highly controversial and hated paid parking issue.
Local columnist Steve Nicklas summed it up in a single sentence in early July this year writing: “The numbers don’t lie. But politicians do.”
He explained saying: “Woeful city commissioners declare it is a cash-strapped city. However, in the last decade, the city’s tax receipts have increased by an additional $50 million.
Steve described a ledger showing how city officials raked in $50 million due to increases in property taxes (thanks to higher assessments), along with $7 million in covid-related funds then blew the cash as fast as it came in.
City officials put drunken sailors to shame buying anything in sight. These buffoons hired 75 additional employees over the 10 years, while the population grew by only 1,600 residents. That’s a new city worker for every 20 residents. At this rate, every city resident will soon have their own personal city employee.
Also, am I the only one to notice all the shiny new city vehicles on city streets? Oh. And we’ll soon have a new city hall to house all these new bureaucrats thanks to the Commission’s largesse.
Let’s not forget, City Commissioner and restauranter Tim Poynter uttered the most self-serving quote of the year when he appeared before the city commission prior to his election and opposed building a restaurant where Amelia Seafood used to be saying: “We don’t need another restaurant downtown.” Poynter is the owner of five downtown eateries.
Finding a sane or honest Commissioner among this Gang of Four pick-pocketing nitwits is an impossibility.
Commissioner Darron Ayscue must feel like going home and taking a shower following each meeting.
***
So, Who Won? You don’t have be a sports fan to have read about the recent WNBA Chicago Sky and the Indiana Fever game.
The articles I read about one of the Fever’s star players, Sophia Cunningham, being whacked in the head by Sky player, DiJonai Carrington, who later called her ejection penalty against Cunningham “white privilege”, failed to provide the score, so I had to look it up.
If anybody cares, Cunningham’s team, the Fever, won 90-86. Was that white privilege too?
***
Speaking Of Scoring: I started my journalism career as a sports writer working for the Tampa Tribune’s Tom McEwen, a legendary Florida sports editor, who insisted we answer the phones and provide scores to pesky callers explaining: “They might be subscribers or advertisers.”
On busy Friday, Saturday, and Sunday game days the background noise on the phone was a clue that the calls came from a bar. Many others came from small time bookies who didn’t have access to AP, UP and other wire services that spit out game summaries and scores continuously into the newsroom.
A call I received one evening came from a guy who had obviously been drinking in the bar he called from and gruffly asking: “Who won the Dick Tiger-Gene Fullmer middleweight fight in 1962?”
We had to look up the answers from books we kept in the newsroom. If we were on deadline these guys were more than annoying and chewed up valuable time.
I correctly told him, “Dick Tiger in 15 rounds.”
Not long after I answered another call came in with the same background noise but a different voice asking the same question. Annoyed and on deadline I said “Gene Fullmer”. “That’s what I thought,” the caller slurred and hung up. I then hollered out to the news room cop desk, saying, “There’ll be a knife fight at the Blue Flame Bar in about five minutes.”
***
Florida Chamber Fetes NYC’s Mamdani: The Florida Chamber of Commerce created a Times Square billboard naming New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani its “Economic Developer of the Year,” citing businesses and wealth fleeing the city for the Sunshine State.
Armed with a $1.8 trillion economy and record-breaking wealth migration, the Florida Chamber has officially launched a Times Square campaign naming New York Mayor Mamdani Florida’s “Economic Developer of the Year” a reminder, according to the Chamber, of how progressive taxes and socialist policies are driving wealth, businesses, and families to the Sunshine State.
“We wanted to thank him for the jobs, the companies and the people that they’re pushing out of New York and a lot of them are coming to Florida,” said a grateful Chamber CEO Mark Wilson.
In addition to putting the onus on Mamdani, the Chamber’s campaign highlights its argument that lower tax rates yield higher total state revenues by incentivizing growth, while blue-state tax hikes trigger a tax-based exodus.
According to the Chamber, citing IRS migration data, Florida gains approximately $2.4 million in net taxable income every hour, while New York loses approximately $1.1 million per hour. The Chamber also says Florida gains a net 551 residents daily, compared to New York losing 115 residents daily.
According to the Florida Chamber’s press release, New York’s state budget is more than double Florida’s, and New York City’s municipal budget alone is more than $8 billion higher than the entire Florida state budget.
Like me, you are probably seeing more NY license plates hereabouts. Let’s hope they leave the politics that drove them out of NYC in NYC.
***
Send In The Clowns: In their limp attempts to defend the constant parade of socialist and communist extremists populating their party, veteran Democrat politicians weakly defend the outrageous rhetoric saying: “We have a big tent with plenty of room.” Every “big tent” I ever entered was filled with calliope music and lots of clowns.
***
Here’s How It Works: An incisive Wall Street Journal letter writer penned a brief and perceptive letter to the editor last week that included a single paragraph that succinctly describes how capitalism leads to prosperity. He wrote: “Every impoverished nation on earth suffers from a shortage of competent capitalists. With no capitalists you starve. With one capitalist, you are underpaid and over-charged. With a hundred capitalists bidding for your labor and competing for your disposal income with lower prices and higher quality, everyone has a steadily increasing standard of living. With a million you get America.”
Where was Bean’s sense of humor when he was office? Very funny and to the point: “Our current city commission doesn’t have a revenue problem, they have a willingness to rob you problem.”
As always, you deliver the most logically sane news to us. Thank you for your take on sanity with a smile.
Just a friendly civic duty reminder to all that early voting ends tomorrow. After that you have the normal voting day Tuesday to cast your vote in the Primary.
This will be determinative for County Commissioners (they won’t be on the November ballot) so this vote is important.
And don’t forget to send a BIG message to the City by voting YES against Paid Parking!!!
Don’t forget a brand new ladder truck. Deputy city manger continued to push for “brand new” on every purchase the city replaced back up generators that had virtually no use on them other than routine start up
On the WNBA, just only allow players with XX chromosomes. Not rocket science!
Dave, Great column! Your comment: “At this rate, every city resident will soon have their own personal city employee” reminds me of when Ross Perot was running for President. He said he was walking through the Department of Agriculture and a man was sitting at his desk crying. Perot said “what’s the matter?” The man responded “my farmer died!”
Sow the wind, reap the whirlwind!! Thanks Dave for exposing the clown show.